I sometimes feel the pressure of making a first draft of a short article perfect (or at least really good). But historically that’s never been the case. My first drafts are usually dumpster fires thrown into bigger dumpster fires.
The way I’m able to approach writing a first draft is through the use of two mental tricks. (1) I pretend it’s just another journal entry I’m writing—that takes the pressure off and I don’t take myself too seriously. (2) I recognize that the majority of what I write in a first draft never makes it to the final draft. The first draft is merely an exercise in structured thinking. The refinement comes later through editing.
I sometimes feel the pressure of making a first draft of a short article perfect (or at least really good). But historically that’s never been the case. My first drafts are usually dumpster fires thrown into bigger dumpster fires.
The way I’m able to approach writing a first draft is through the use of two mental tricks. (1) I pretend it’s just another journal entry I’m writing—that takes the pressure off and I don’t take myself too seriously. (2) I recognize that the majority of what I write in a first draft never makes it to the final draft. The first draft is merely an exercise in structured thinking. The refinement comes later through editing.